Speaking Out on Taxing Issues

This week, DMA wrote a letter to the full Senate, urging them to vote against final passage of the so-called Marketplace Fairness Act, pointing out that the bill would“ hinder economic growth and job creation.” (You can help by writing your own letter on this and other issues at DMAAction.org) All week, DMA’ star government affairs team has been gaining some notable coverage in the media on the subject.

Jerry Cerasale’s powerful Op Ed piece in the Washington Times warned against making any rash decisions on pending Internet sales-tax legislation:

“Some ideas are just bad timing, and some ideas are just plain bad. The Internet sales-tax legislation being rushed to the Senate floor, the so-called Marketplace Fairness Act, has the dubious distinction of being both. Right now, businesses collect sales tax in states where they have a physical presence. That makes sense: if you are a retailer in Texas, you collect taxes there. But under this legislation, that same Texas business would be forced to pay sales tax to 45 other state tax authorities across the country. . . .[The Senate] should soberly weigh the shortcomings of this ill-timed legislation and send it back to the drawing board. If they don’t, the only ones cheering will be accountants and lawyers and the state tax collectors who will see out-of-state businesses as ripe for the plucking.

Jerry is also conducting interviews this week with Bloomberg TV, NPR, WBAL Radio, and RT-TV.

In Direct Marketing News, Ron Barnes noted, “We don’t think the senate floor is the best place to have the first markup on a piece of legislation that is as sweeping and important as this one is.” Ron was also quoted in a Mediapost article, saying that DMA is concerned that the law lacks the kinds of provision that would make it easier for businesses to calculate state and local sales tax. “The bill doesn’t require the necessary level of simplification in state sales tax collection and administration.” In PC World, Ron pointed out that the bill “has major flaws and would be a tremendous burden on the backs of remote sellers.”

All DMA members (and non members) can help support DMA and industry on these issues – and preventing heedless or harmful industry regulation. Take DMAAction today.